I Handled the Cleanup Alone
I laid out the unconscious Choi Sangjun and Imi Jin side by side on the living room sofa. The blood they'd shed was just blood—nothing more sinister, no actual wounds on their bodies. Just like how Choi Jiyun had vomited up the foul thing inside her, the obscene energy that had built up in their lower bodies had simply poured out in the form of blood. A little rest and they'd be back to their normal married life in no time.
They'd wanted an adopted child in the first place because of Imi Jin's infertility, which meant their trust and love for each other ran deep. It was just that bringing home a problem child from school had temporarily wrecked their normal relationship. Now that we'd removed that alien element called Gyeopsik, things would return to normal with a bit of time.
"I've got a ton of shit to do, and no one's paying me a steady salary for it. This sure as hell ain't the boss life I signed up for!"
I wandered through the house, collecting all the 'bad memories' left behind that had turned into spirits and possessed the sacrificial dolls. I gathered the dolls together and burned them on the terrace. There was a bit of smoke, but no one gave a damn. The fire died down quick, and a little puff rising into the dark night sky was nothing. Even the security guards hired by the rich bastards couldn't complain about a bit of smoke. They'd just chalk it up to another chaebol heir's weird antics and ignore it.
Finally, I tidied up the wrecked house and stuffed all our gear into the duffel bag. Then I hoisted the passed-out Gyeopsik and S-man under my arms and strolled out of the building like it was nothing. I tossed the bag and the two of them into the pickup truck and headed for the Mad Woman's divination shop.
As expected, the shop's lights were blazing even at this late hour. The moment I showed up at the door carrying the pair, a middle-aged woman opened it from inside.
"Ah, the Bodhisattva's waiting inside."
"You're the auntie who cooks for her, right? My employee's always mooching off you."
"......"
I brushed past the middle-aged woman, who couldn't meet my eyes, and stepped into the shop. It wasn't really a divination shop anyway—no clients ever came, and the Mad Woman didn't read fortunes for anyone but herself. According to her, any spot in Seoul where she could serve the gods was fine, so she'd just plopped down here on a whim.
The Mad Woman knelt before an elaborate ritual table laden with food, shaking her bell with a rattle-rattle. Even from behind, her rage was palpable. Then, abruptly, the bell went silent.
"Do you even know what you've done?"
"The most human thing possible."
"...The skies over Seoul shook—shook like the very heavens guarded by Lord Yongsin. Even a thousand-year-old imugi couldn't pull off something like that against the natural order."
I set the two down on the floor without a word.
"I saw the heavenly mechanism unravel. Every impure thing in the world revealed itself, even rising up together in rebellion. If the great overseers of the cosmos, the heavenly gods themselves, hadn't set it right, the world would've ended in an instant. Tigers descending from mountains, snakes bursting from burrows, sea demons crawling from the depths—a true hellscape unfolding in this realm!"
"I just did what I had to."
"Then let me do what I have to!!!"
With a thunderous roar, she lunged at me, grabbing my collar with a grip that was anything but ladylike.
"Let me kill you! Let me end it all with my own hands so you can't fuck up this world anymore!!"
"It's not time yet."
"......!"
I brushed off her hands.
"You have your mission, and I have mine. Pursuing what you want to achieve, seizing what you crave, witnessing the ending you desire—that's what makes us truly human, isn't it? We're humans. We deserve to live like humans and die like humans."
"You're no human. Who in this world could call you that?"
"Me."
I smoothed out my rumpled clothes as I answered.
"I prove my own humanity, and I know my human life isn't over yet. If mere death could deny it, I'd die inevitably. But as long as I'm fully human, not even death can break me."
"That's why I can't die yet. I've got too much unfinished business. Even the souls of those who die pointlessly linger in the nine heavens if regrets remain—so how could I die without tying up my loose ends properly?"
"......"
"Even if I gave you permission to kill me right now, you couldn't. You'd waste your strength on a futile outcome, drown in helplessness and despair at doing nothing—that's really what you want?"
"......"
"If that's your wish, go ahead—kill me now. Use every ounce of your power, rip my soul to shreds, burn it clean so no regrets linger. Throw your life away like kindling if you have to."
The Mad Woman ground her teeth until blood seeped from her lips. Her glare held not the calm of a seasoned shaman, but inner conflict, confusion, and raw fury. She knew it too. Even if I stood there defenseless, perfectly erasing my soul without a trace was impossible.
"I used to fear peering into faces or souls, seeing the paths they had to walk or futures they couldn't escape. Now I resent that those 'great' powers mean nothing against you. If I could read your fate, I'd have no regrets in life—pure happiness. Knowing you had an 'end' would let me strike without hesitation. But I can't, and I hate myself for being so useless."
"That's what a human life is. Embrace it."
"...Fucking bastard."
She laughed with a hollow, bitter expression, her eyes burning with venom. Unable to act or hold back, she had no choice but to numbly accept the present—hating herself for yielding to my words, yet despising me, the source, even more.
"The important thing is I'm the boss of the Supernatural Phenomena Resolution Office, and you're my employee. Sure, I work you like a dog, but if you want a fat year-end bonus, keep treating me like shit~."
"Yeah, right. Bring those two over here first."
I laid the unconscious Gyeopsik and S-man in front of the ritual table she'd set up. She clicked her tongue but examined them calmly.
"This one's been overly exposed to yin energy since you first met—always low on yang. And the yin from this latest encounter? Off the charts. The moment you dropped it to the 'bottom,' the heavens shook—you can imagine how massive it was."
"A lustful, evil thing like that would have thick yin, naturally."
"Just temporary weakness from excess yin overwhelming his deficient yang. Some rest and yang-boosting treatments, and he'll be fine. Lucky I talisman'd him and you were there—any normal guy would've had his energy twisted, soul core shattered, dead on the spot."
"S-man wasn't normal to begin with, was he?"
"He believes in you. Who else in this world sincerely trusts a freak like you? Normal?"
"Guy's a loyal employee, at least. Top candidate for Employee of the Year at the office."
"...This one's different, though."
Ignoring my quip, she poked and prodded Gyeopsik's body all over, unlike with S-man. She'd press a spot, hum thoughtfully, then tsk at another.
"That thing you dropped to the bottom—it was inside her, right?"
"Yeah. Checking its sins, I saw it seeped in on her exact 100th day, during the doljanchi celebration."
"Hiding something foul in doljanchi items to meddle with fate? That's ancient, forbidden black magic no one uses anymore. Some bastard who deserves a thousand deaths pulled that."
"What I saw was the thing's sin memory—not who enabled it. Couldn't ID them, but someone close to her birth parents—a friend or relative."
"One thing's certain: a devil worshiper. Only someone like that could casually do such vile shit and sacrifice a baby to summon something from the bottom."
"From your view, evil god worshiper, right?"
"Shamans lean Buddhist, but we know what Christians mean by demons."
She prodded a few more spots, then pressed lightly on her belly.
"Choose now."
"What?"
"That lustful, evil thing's energy lingers heavily in her. Even remnants carry its power. Think a normal girl can live normally with that? So—let me destroy it completely, or let her fully accept it. Your call, since you brought her. I've got my own karma; can't shoulder this too."
"Destroy it, and...?"
"She could live normally, but not as a woman. Half a life in a woman's body."
"Accept it fully?"
"A woman's life, but not normal. Slight slip and she's a mythic monster or evil god. Could wreck the world's balance if she wanted."
One thing was sure, she added.
"Either way, massive repercussions. That's why I'm dumping this on you—the karma's too huge for anyone else to handle alone."
"She wanted normalcy. Born abnormal, lived abnormal—craved it more than anyone. But half a life? Normal from our view, torture from hers. Still unhappy, hard."
"So you're leaving a kid with dangerous power alone?"
"You offered full acceptance as an option, so you can do it, right? You wouldn't suggest the impossible."
"......"
"Help her. Same gender, life senior in abnormality. Teach her to wield it right."
"...You sure? I told you—the karma's huge; you'll bear it all."
"Begging to kill me earlier, now worried? My employees love their boss."
"Bullshit. Her karma might derail your duties. Then I can't kill you."
"Ah."
I got it.
"Even more reason not to care. We're human adults—with duties to our Gyeopsik. So care for her."
"...Fine."
My business done, I headed out.
"Take good care of those two for a bit. Got my own stuff. Call if needed."
"...This job's alerted plenty to your existence. You don't see it, but I saw tons."
"Yeah, yeah."
I threw her words back and left the shop.